On-Demand, Just in Time!
Adobe. Agfa. BARCO Graphics. EFI. Epson. IBM. Indigo. Heidelberg. PageFlex. Scitex. Splash. Varis. Xeikon. Xerox. The movers and shakers of on-demand got together recently in the Big Apple to promote everything from variable-data software to wide-format output to the latest initiatives in PDF functionality, servers and digital cameras.
BY MARIE RANOIA ALONSO
Between the digital prepress performances of Seybold Boston and Seybold San Francisco, the greats of the on-demand digital printing industry hit the Big Apple with the latest in digital color presses, variable data software, digital cameras—everything and anything designed to boost the short-run performance standards of the on-demand digital printing market.
The full spectrum of on-demand digital printing players gathered at New York's Jacob K. Javits Convention Center last month to tout the latest technological innovations to hit the digital short-run printing market. Of course, PDF talk permeated certain segments of the on-demand exhibits.
To bring a byte of On-Demand home, Printing Impressions provides this checklist of interesting product talk from the most digital (printing) show around.
Agfa demonstrated the Chromapress 50i digital color printing system, which ran a wide range of applications including posters and customized one-to-one marketing materials. Agfa attention was also cast at the AiiS server, which allows host data streams like AFP and Metacode to be directly formatted in process color and printed on a Chromapress without having to generate a PostScript file.
Heidelberg launched its new Quickmaster DI Plus, a two-up direct imaging system for the short-run color market that sports new advancements over the original Quickmaster DI. Upgrades include faster imaging times, faster and improved plate cleaning, faster RIP times, more ink zones and an ergonomic control panel.
Indigo demonstrated TurboStream and e-Print Pro digital offset color presses, producing a broad spectrum of high-value products. The flagship of the Indigo press family, TurboStream is a six-color digital press ideal for mid- to high-volume jobs. Indigo's e-Print Pro is a four-color press designed for entry- level users.
Kodak Professional bolstered the feature-set of its Kodak Professional DCS 315 digital camera by providing new firmware to enhance contour and color quality, and new software to improve the overall quality of images. Kodak also showcased its new EI (enhanced imaging) ink-jet media, designed for wide-format ink-jet printers.
Xeikon demonstrated the Xeikon eXpert Plus Solution for the DCP/50D, which smoothly integrates the second generation PrintStreamer, combining workflow capabilities with powerful RIPs and a robust package of front-end features. Xeikon also demonstrated the Nipson 7000-4000 black-and-white, web-based, high-speed digital printer with a printing speed of 196 fpm. Nipson's open system architecture ran in a VariScript configuration.
Xerox announced two releases of production publishing software that bring native PDF printing to the DocuTech family and the DocuPrint 65. Both version 1.4 of the Xerox DocuSP controller and version 1.2 of Xerox DigiPath production software support the PDF format. Xerox also showed the first booklet maker that runs in-line with the Xerox DocuTech 6100 production printer to create an automated booklet- making system. Xerox Document Booklet System is designed for mid- to low-volume production.
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